This invention relates generally to imaging and, more particularly, to scalable multislice imaging systems.
In at least some imaging systems generally referred as computed tomography (CT) systems, an x-ray source projects a fan-shaped beam which is collimated to lie within an X-Y plane of a Cartesian coordinate system and generally referred to as the "imaging plane". The x-ray beam passes through the object being imaged, such as a patient. The beam, after being attenuated by the object, impinges upon an array of radiation detectors. The intensity of the attenuated beam radiation received at the detector array is dependent upon the attenuation of the x-ray beam by the object. Each detector element of the array produces a separate electrical signal that is a measurement of the beam attenuation at the detector location. The attenuation measurements from all the detectors are acquired separately to produce a transmission profile.
In known third generation CT systems, the x-ray source and the detector array are rotated with a gantry within the imaging plane and around the object to be imaged so that the angle at which the x-ray beam intersects the object constantly changes. X-ray sources typically include x-ray tubes, which emit the x-ray beam at a focal spot. X-ray detectors typically include a collimator for collimating x-ray beams received at the detector, a scintillator adjacent the collimator, and photodiodes adjacent the scintillator.
Dual (two) slice CT systems are known, but at least some of the commercially available dual slice systems have a number of limitations, including balancing scanning speed and z-axis resolution (e.g., as scanning speed increases, z-axis resolution decreases), image quality associated with image reconstruction processing, and flexibility, e.g., such systems cannot collect more than 2 slices of data. Particularly, the known commercially available dual slice systems are not scalable in that such dual slice systems cannot be configured to collect more than two slices of data.
In addition, for many clinical applications of CT imaging, CT images in different slice thickness, different cross-sectional orientation, and different 3D display models must be examined for accurate diagnosis. In many cases, multiple CT scans and image reconstructions are required for such diagnosis. As a result, diagnosis can be very time consuming and sometimes can result in delay of treatment to patients.
It would be desirable to provide a multislice CT system that can be used to collect one, two or more slices of data, and is readily configurable to perform the scans and reconstructions necessary for accurate diagnosis. It also would be desirable to reduce the complexity and time required in performing such scans and reconstructions.